¹Now these are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem unto the residue of the elders which were carried away captives, and to the priests, and to the prophets, and to all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had carried away captive from Jerusalem to Babylon;

¹Zvino awa ndiwo mashoko orugwaro rwakatumwa nomuporofita Jeremiya ari paJerusaremu kuvakuru vakanga vasara kuna vakatapwa, nokuvapristi nokuvaporofita, nokuvanhu vose, vakanga vakatapwa paJerusaremu naNebhukadhinezari, vakaiswa Bhabhironi,

²(After that Jeconiah the king, and the queen, and the eunuchs, the princes of Judah and Jerusalem, and the carpenters, and the smiths, were departed from Jerusalem;)

²Shure kokubva paJerusaremu kwamambo Jekonia, namai vake, navaranda, namachinda aJudha neeJerusaremu, navavezi, navapfuri,

³By the hand of Elasah the son of Shaphan, and Gemariah the son of Hilkiah, (whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent unto Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon) saying,

³noruoko rwaErasa, mwanakomana waShafani, naGemaria, mwanakomana waHirikia, vakanga vatumwa Bhabhironi naZedhekia mambo waJudha kuna Nebhukadhinezari mambo weBhabhironi, achiti,

⁴Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, unto all that are carried away captives, whom I have caused to be carried away from Jerusalem unto Babylon;

⁴Zvanzi naJehovha wehondo, Mwari waIsiraeri, kuna vose vakatapwa, vandakatapisa Jerusaremu vaiswe Bhabhironi.

⁵Build ye houses, and dwell in them; and plant gardens, and eat the fruit of them;

⁵Zvivakirei dzimba, mugaremo; simai minda, mudye zvibereko zvayo;

⁶Take ye wives, and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; that ye may be increased there, and not diminished.

⁶wanai vakadzi, mubereke vanakomana navanasikana; wanisai vanakomana venyu vakadzi, navanasikana venyu muvaise kuvarume, kuti vabereke vanakomana navanasikana, muwandeko, murege kutapudzwa.

⁷And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captives, and pray unto the LORD for it: for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace.

⁷Mutsvake rugare rweguta kwandakakutapisai, murinyengeterere kuna Jehovha; nekuti norugare rwaro imwi muchava norugarewo.

⁸For thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Let not your prophets and your diviners, that be in the midst of you, deceive you, neither hearken to your dreams which ye cause to be dreamed.

⁸nekuti zvanzi naJehovha wehondo, Mwari waIsiraeri, Vaporofita venyu, vari pakati penyu, navauki venyu, ngavarege kukunyengerai; regai kuteerera kurota kwenyu kwamunoroteswa.

⁹For they prophesy falsely unto you in my name: I have not sent them, saith the LORD.

⁹nekuti vanokuporofitirai nhema nezita rangu, ini handina kuvatuma, ndizvo zvinotaura Jehovha.

¹⁰For thus saith the LORD, That after seventy years be accomplished at Babylon I will visit you, and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place.

¹⁰nekuti zvanzi naJehovha, Kana makore makumi manomwe aperera Bhabhironi, ndichakushanyirai, nokukusimbisirai shoko rangu rakanaka, ndichikudzoserai kunzvimbo ino.

¹¹For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.

¹¹nekuti ndinoziva ndangariro dzandinorangarira pamusoro penyu, ndizvo zvinotaura Jehovha, ndangariro dzorugare, dzisati dziri dzezvakaipa, kuti ndikupei mugumo une tariro.

¹²Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you.

¹²Muchadana kwandiri, muchandonyengetera kwandiri, neni ndichakunzwai.

¹³And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.

¹³Muchanditsvaka, mukandiwana, kana muchinditsvaka nomoyo wenyu wose.

¹⁴And I will be found of you, saith the LORD: and I will turn away your captivity, and I will gather you from all the nations, and from all the places whither I have driven you, saith the LORD; and I will bring you again into the place whence I caused you to be carried away captive.

¹⁴Ndichawanikwa nemi, ndizvo zvinotaura Jehovha, ndichakudzosai pakutapwa kwenyu, nokukuunganidzai kumarudzi ose, nokunzvimbo dzose kwandakanga ndakudzingirai, ndizvo zvinotaura Jehovha; ndichakudzoseraizve kunzvimbo kwandakanga ndakutapisai.

¹⁵Because ye have said, The LORD hath raised us up prophets in Babylon;

¹⁵Zvamakati, Jehovha wakatimutsira vaporofita paBhabhironi;

¹⁶Know that thus saith the LORD of the king that sitteth upon the throne of David, and of all the people that dwelleth in this city, and of your brethren that are not gone forth with you into captivity;

¹⁶zvanzi naJehovha pamusoro pamambo ugere pachigaro choushe chaDhavhidhi, napamusoro pavanhu vose vagere muguta rino, idzo hama dzenyu dzisina kuenda nemwi pakutapwa kwenyu;

¹⁷Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Behold, I will send upon them the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, and will make them like vile figs, that cannot be eaten, they are so evil.

¹⁷zvanzi naJehovha wehondo, Tarirai, ndichatuma pamusoro pavo munondo, nenzara, nehosha yakaipa, ndichavaita samaonde akaipa kwazvo, asingabviri kudyiwa nokuipa kwawo.

¹⁸And I will persecute them with the sword, with the famine, and with the pestilence, and will deliver them to be removed to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a curse, and an astonishment, and an hissing, and a reproach, among all the nations whither I have driven them:

¹⁸Ndichateverera nomunondo, nenzara, nehosha yakaipa; ndichavaita chinhu chinotyisa ushe hwose bwenyika, vave chinhu chinotukwa, nechishamiso, nechinoridzirwa muridzo, nechinoshoorwa pakati pamarudzi ose kwandakavadzingira;

¹⁹Because they have not hearkened to my words, saith the LORD, which I sent unto them by my servants the prophets, rising up early and sending them; but ye would not hear, saith the LORD.

¹⁹zvavasina kuteerera mashoko angu, ndizvo zvinotaura Jehovha, andakatuma kwavari navaranda vangu vaporofita, ndichimuka mangwanani ndichivatuma; asi makaramba kuteerera, ndizvo zvinotaura Jehovha.

²⁰Hear ye therefore the word of the LORD, all ye of the captivity, whom I have sent from Jerusalem to Babylon:

²⁰Naizvozvo chinzwai shoko raJehovha, imwi mose makatapwa, vandakadzinga paJerusaremu ndikavaisa Bhabhironi.

²¹Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, of Ahab the son of Kolaiah, and of Zedekiah the son of Maaseiah, which prophesy a lie unto you in my name; Behold, I will deliver them into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon; and he shall slay them before your eyes;

²¹Zvanzi naJehovha wehondo, Mwari waIsiraeri, pamusoro paAhabhi mwanakomana waKoraia, napamusoro paZedhekia mwanakomana waMaaseia, vanokuporofitirai nhema nezita rangu, Tarirai, ndinovaisa muruoko rwaNebhukadhirezari mambo weBhabhironi; iye uchavauraya pamberi penyu;

²²And of them shall be taken up a curse by all the captivity of Judah which are in Babylon, saying, The LORD make thee like Zedekiah and like Ahab, whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire;

²²vatapwa vose vaJudha, vari Bhabhironi, vachatora kwavari shoko rokutuka naro, vachiti, Jehovha akuite saZedhekia uye saAhabhi, vakagochwa pamoto namambo weBhabhironi.

²³Because they have committed villany in Israel, and have committed adultery with their neighbours' wives, and have spoken lying words in my name, which I have not commanded them; even I know, and am a witness, saith the LORD.

²³nekuti vakaita nohupenzi pakati paIsiraeri, vakaita hupombwe navakadzi vovokwavo, vakareva mashoko enhema nezita rangu, andisina kuvaraira; ini ndini ndinoziva, ndini chapupu, ndizvo zvinotaura Jehovha.

²⁴Thus shalt thou also speak to Shemaiah the Nehelamite, saying,

²⁴Zvino kuna Shemaia muNeheramite, unofanira kutaura uchiti,

²⁵Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, saying, Because thou hast sent letters in thy name unto all the people that are at Jerusalem, and to Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah the priest, and to all the priests, saying,

²⁵Zvanzi naJehovha wehondo, Mwari waIsiraeri, Zvawakatuma magwaro nezita rako kuvanhu vose vari paJerusaremu, nokuna Zefaniya mwanakomana womupristi Maaseia, nokuvapristi vose, uchiti,

²⁶The LORD hath made thee priest in the stead of Jehoiada the priest, that ye should be officers in the house of the LORD, for every man that is mad, and maketh himself a prophet, that thou shouldest put him in prison, and in the stocks.

²⁶Jehovha wakakuita mupristi panzvimbo yomupristi Jehoiadha, kuti mumba maJehovha muve navatariri, kuti asunge mumatanda namaketani mumwe nomumwe unopenga, achizviita muporofita.

²⁷Now therefore why hast thou not reproved Jeremiah of Anathoth, which maketh himself a prophet to you?

²⁷Ko zvino wakaregerei kutuka Jeremiya weAnatoti, unozviita muporofita pamberi penyu,

²⁸For therefore he sent unto us in Babylon, saying, This captivity is long: build ye houses, and dwell in them; and plant gardens, and eat the fruit of them.

²⁸zvaakatuma shoko kwatiri paBhabhironi, achiti, Nguva irefu, vakai dzimba mugaremo; simai minda, mudye zvibereko zvayo?

²⁹And Zephaniah the priest read this letter in the ears of Jeremiah the prophet.

²⁹Zvino mupristi Zefaniya akaravira muporofita Jeremiya rugwaro urwu.

³⁰Then came the word of the LORD unto Jeremiah, saying,

³⁰Ipapo shoko raJehovha rakauya kuna Jeremiya, richiti,

³¹Send to all them of the captivity, saying, Thus saith the LORD concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite; Because that Shemaiah hath prophesied unto you, and I sent him not, and he caused you to trust in a lie:

³¹Tumira vakatapwa vose shoko rinoti, Zvanzi naJehovha pamusoro paShemaia muNeheramiti, Shemaia zvaakakuporofitirai, ini ndisina kumutuma, akakutendisai nhema,

³²Therefore thus saith the LORD; Behold, I will punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite, and his seed: he shall not have a man to dwell among this people; neither shall he behold the good that I will do for my people, saith the LORD; because he hath taught rebellion against the LORD.

³²naizvozvo zvanzi naJehovha, Tarirai, ndicharova Shemaia muNeheramiti, navana vake; haangavi nomunhu ungagara pakati pavanhu ava, uye haangaoni zvakanaka zvandichaitira vanhu vangu ndizvo zvinotaura Jehovha nekuti wakataura zvinomukira Jehovha.